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The M16K is a US Army standard issue M16 rifle modified by the company La France Specialties, which among with other firearm related activities, convert common military weapons into more compact configurations typically for law enforcement and special forces use.

The M16K is a so-called “K” weapon (“K" standing for the German word Kurtz meaning short.) The La France M16K, was basically a standard military M16 rifle, chambered for the standard issue 5.56mm cartridge with an eight and three eights inch barrel (standard barrel length is 20 inches). Like many automatic and semi-automatic weapons the M16 utilizes pressure from the propellant gases in the barrel to cycle the bolt of the firearm. Most automatic weapons use a mechanical device such as a rod and piston between the bolt and the propellant gases. This is not the case in the M16 design in which gases are tapped off the barrel near the muzzle and flow though a tube to directly impinge on the bolt to initiate the auto loading cycle. In a standard issue M16, the gas tube is roughly 16 inches long to produce an automatic (cyclic) rate of fie of approximately 650 rpm (rounds per minute). Shortening the barrel increases the rate of fire significantly and thereby makes the weapon difficult to control and less reliable. To use a significantly shorter barrel than the standard issue without increasing the rate of fire, La France designed (and subsequently patented) an adjustable gas system that would keep the rate of fire the same as with a full-length barrel.

The M16K was produced by La France beginning in 1982, subsequently a highly modified variation of this gun was developed which was designated the M16K-45 which was chambered for the .45 ACP round and utilizing 20 or 30 round Thompson submachine gun magazines. Except for the magazines this firearm was entirely manufactured by La France and not just a modification of an existing firearm as was case with the original M16K. In the 1990`s agreement was entered in to between La France Specialties and NAIT to distribute La France Specialty products. La France Specialties was acquired by SureFire, LLC in 2004, and all La France products are still available.